For the lawful character, individual choice is unimportant, being a cog in the machine is important.
I think that Nathan is the same sort of Lawful that Miles Vorkosigan is. He has no problem with chain of command, so long as he gets to be the top of the chain. He likes the fact that the machine works smoothly, but he is profoundly *un*happy to be a cog.
Mr. Bennet is not looking for personal power.
Now, Mr. Bennett is (well, was until recently) happy being a cog. But he still reads as Evil to me. In the flashback episode where he joins the OWI, the way he delivered the line about "I'm okay with 'grey'" sounded to me like the words of a sadist who knows that he will be getting a safe outlet for causing pain. Of course, the words themselves are about Neutrality, so perhaps the writers didn't intend that interpretation.
Also, despite years of loyalty, as soon as his personal interests start to diverge from his employers, he *immediately* begins to disobey their orders. He doesn't even have to think about it, as far as we can tell. His love for his family in general, and Claire in particular, seem to me to be cracks in his previous character, indicating he may be drifting towards Good. The version of Bennett in the flashback seemed to almost enjoy the thought of deceiving his wife, whereas the more recent man seems to be much more deeply in love with her.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2007-03-26 08:43 pm (UTC)I think that Nathan is the same sort of Lawful that Miles Vorkosigan is. He has no problem with chain of command, so long as he gets to be the top of the chain. He likes the fact that the machine works smoothly, but he is profoundly *un*happy to be a cog.
Mr. Bennet is not looking for personal power.
Now, Mr. Bennett is (well, was until recently) happy being a cog. But he still reads as Evil to me. In the flashback episode where he joins the OWI, the way he delivered the line about "I'm okay with 'grey'" sounded to me like the words of a sadist who knows that he will be getting a safe outlet for causing pain. Of course, the words themselves are about Neutrality, so perhaps the writers didn't intend that interpretation.
Also, despite years of loyalty, as soon as his personal interests start to diverge from his employers, he *immediately* begins to disobey their orders. He doesn't even have to think about it, as far as we can tell. His love for his family in general, and Claire in particular, seem to me to be cracks in his previous character, indicating he may be drifting towards Good. The version of Bennett in the flashback seemed to almost enjoy the thought of deceiving his wife, whereas the more recent man seems to be much more deeply in love with her.